Top 10 Albums of 2008

1.  Only By The Night–Kings of Leon. When I first heard Kings of Leon on SNL earlier this year I thought to myself, “Self, why haven’t you heard this music before?”  It was probably because I pushed KOL off as too hipster for my tastes.  Boy was I wrong.  This album really sold me on their music.  It’s slightly haunting, with a tinge of regret and a lot of angst.  I’ve seen many reviews call this southern rock (probably because the boys are from the South), but I’d think of it more as just good rock.  Plain and Simple.   Delicious Tracks: “Sex on Fire,” “Use Somebody,” “Manhattan”

2.   Robyn–Robyn. I was nervous to pick this album up at first.  I liked the single “Every Heartbeat” so much that I felt as if the rest of the album could never meet my expectations.  Suffice it to say, I was wrong.  Robyn, who had such 90s hits as “Show Me Love,” came back fiercely with the self-titled Robyn in 2008.  It turns out “Every Heartbeat,” was not a fluke, but rather a sample of what was to come.  Declicious Tracks:  “Every Heartbeat,” “Konichiwa Bitches,” “Handle Me”

3.  Detours–Sheryl Crow. Picking up this album is like picking up Sheryl’s debut, Tuesday Night Music Club all over again.  She has the story of heartbreak only a woman could tell with a tinge of cynicism and a lining of hope.   I always liked this album, but it took me awhile to get into it.  I do have to say that I think the track placement is off and that if it were rearranged it could be a big hit.  Sometimes things like that prevent an album from being all it can be.  Delicious Tracks: “Gasoline,” “Detours,” “Shine Over Babylon”

4.   808s & Heartbreak–Kanye West. I have to admit, I’ve never listened to a Kanye album that I didn’t like.  That being said, he really changed his aim on 808s & Heartbreak.  Instead of being flamboyantly out there, West proved himself to be a regular person with regular thoughts.  This is evident on the second track, “Welcome to Heartbreak,” where Kanye confesses, “My friend showed me pictures of his kids/And all I could show him were pictures of my cribs./He said his daughter got a brand-new report card,/And all I got was a brand-new sportscar.”   Bonus points for a kick ass cover and insert design and theme. Delicious Tracks:  “Welcome to Heartbreak,” “Heartless,” “Love Lockdown”

5.  Cardinology–Ryan Adams and The Cardinals. There was a time, not so long ago, where Ryan Adams and the Cardinals would put out an album every time you visited a place where CDs were sold (which for me is quite often).  The result was narrow successes teetering on disasters.  This time around the group took a hiatus from constantly cranking out whatever came to mind and put out something rather brilliant, thought-provoking and melodically stimulating.  Delicious Tracks: “Born Into A Light,” “Fix It,” “Natural Ghost”

6.  Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends–Coldplay. Brian Eno is an amazing producer.  Sure Coldplay is a great band and all, but they tend to get pedantic when left to their own devices.  Eno’s influence on the album’s outcome is dripping all over the lead single “Viva La Vida.”  The tone of the album sounds like U2 in their hayday and does not stop until the last note is heard.  As always, Chris Martin’s lyrics are, for the most part, brilliant (I have to say that “just because I’m hurting doesn’t mean I’m hurt,” is a lie though).  Delicious Tracks: “Lost!,” “Violet Hill,” “Viva La Vida”

7.  Funhouse–Pink. It’s a growing theme in this list–albums about being heartbroken.  But Pink does it differently.  She gives in on tracks like “It’s All Your Fault,” and “I Don’t Believe You,” but takes a more fun look at the other side of marriage and divorce in places like the hit “So What.”  If anything Pink has taught us that we’re all survivors and can all have a little fun–and success–in having a broken heart.  Delicious Tracks: “So What,” “I Don’t Believe You,” “Funhouse”

8.  Circus–Britney Spears. So it’s not the most cohesive album in the world.  But it is fun and makes you want to dance around the house.  And for Ms. Spears, this is a huge victory.  2007′s Blackout was mediocre, but Circus holds a certain je ne sais quoi that Blackout didn’t.  One thing I’ll never understand–why one of the bonus tracks on the deluxe version was an album track from Blackout.  Did someone just have a brain fart that day?  Delicious Tracks:  “Lace and Leather,” “Circus,” “Blur”

9.  Flavors of Entanglement–Alanis Morisette. Again, what an album heartbreak makes.  There’s no one better on heartbreak than the diva of heartbreak, Alanis Morisette.  The best part is that she gets that she’ll come out of it a better person, but allows herself to grieve.   Delicious Tracks:  “Incomplete,” “Not As We,” “Underneath”

10. 19–Adele. You’d have to be stuck under a rock not to have heard Adele’s hit song “Chasing Pavements.” Her album, 19 is more than just a Chasing Pavements-festival. It’s filled with jazzy numbers as well as perfect covers. The album makes an evening sound that much more important and that much more memorable. Delicious Tracks: “To Make You Feel My Love,” “Chasing Pavements,” “Daydreamer”

Honorable Mention

Hard Candy–Madonna. You have to hand it to the woman.  For age 50, she’s still pumping out the hits and she puts on a great show.  Hard Candy isn’t as critically popular as some of Madge’s other work, but it represents a return to pop form that wasn’t present in previous albums which were focused on dance beats and more lofty topics.  Like Britney’s Circus, Madge’s Hard Candy will have you dancing, but it will also have you thinking about love and life.  Maybe more than you wanted to be thinking.  Delicious Tracks:  “Candy Shop,” “Devil Wouldn’t Recognize You,” “Give It 2 Me”

What does 2009 hold in store?